NASHUA — If not for the Nashua Drug Court program, its participants would be facing a significant amount of jail time.

However, select high-risk, high-need individuals are eligible for the program. After Thursday’s graduation ceremony, 46 people have completed the program. The latest three to graduate at Hillsborough County Superior Court-South are Elisha Branchi Escamilla, Gregory Winslow and Priscilla Matos.

On average, it takes roughly two years for participants to complete the intensive program. Presiding Justice Judge Jacalyn Colburn is well aware that this program is no easy task, and said many participants will admit that is more difficult than just going to jail.

“Like most drug court participants, if not all, combined, these three have experienced addictions to a wide range of drugs, which include alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, crack cocaine, crystal meth, and not surprisingly, heroin and fentanyl,” Colburn said.

As is typical of folks dealing with severe substance use disorder, most began this journey in their early teens. Colburn said substance use treatment and behavior modification are cornerstones of the program. As an alternative to incarnation, individuals are provided with an opportunity to promote recovery, reduce crime, restore family and to successfully reintegrate into the community. She said the mission of Nashua Drug Court is to reduce recidivism, and enhance community safety by providing participants – whose chemical dependence resulted in criminal behavior – with treatment, education and community supervision.

Greater Nashua Mental Health Center is the primary provider of substance use disorder treatment for program participants.

“Whether you’re in Drug Court now, you’re graduating today or have been involved in Drug Court in the past, the Steering Committee, we’re all part of your community now,” keynote speaker and Hillsborough County Adult Drug Court Steering Committee Member David Tencza said. “Don’t think of your community as just the recovery community. The community is everyone. We’re proud of what you’ve done, how far you’ve come.”

In addition to treatment, individuals undergo hands-on case management and random urinalysis.

Additionally, they are often required to do other programming such as life skills, financial management class, parenting class or perhaps even couples counseling.

Colburn said each of these three graduates came to the point of needing this Drug Court option after having had a number of contacts with the criminal justice system.

“Their combined history reflects an excess of 20 criminal arrests and convictions, both misdemeanor and felony, for which they have been repeatedly incarcerated,” Colburn said. “Their crimes have included, of course, possession and sales of controlled and narcotic substances, robbery, thefts by both unauthorized taking and by deception, receiving stolen property, burglary, forgery, possession of firearms, thefts of firearms, reckless conduct and violations of probation.”

She said this is a typical list for a drug court participant. However, she said all three now have the skills to put their criminal pasts behind them once and for all.

“We applaud the hard work they did to get to this point,” Colburn said.

In concluding Thursday’s ceremony, Colburn kept with the tradition seen in previous graduations in reading a passage from “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” by Dr. Seuss, and gave each graduate their own copy to take with them as they embark on a new life, free from drug use and criminal behavior.

Adam Urquhart may be contacted at 594-1206, or at aurquhart@nashuatelegraph.com.

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